


One Step Behind

by SarunoHadaki



Category: Dragon Quest XI
Genre: (Nearly) monster-free Erdrea, Action/Adventure, Also I love picking on Erik, Attempt at Humor, Canon Compliant, El speaks, Established Relationship, Found Family, Friendship/Love, Hero's name is Eleven, I love Mia so much she deserves the world, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Minor Character Death, Minor Relationships, OCs - Freeform, POV Eleven, Post-Canon, Self-Indulgent, Some angst, Some hurt/comfort, lots of fluff, spoilers for the whole game
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-25 14:15:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30090360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SarunoHadaki/pseuds/SarunoHadaki
Summary: The evil that once sought to destroy Erdrea has been defeated, and in the aftermath stands a hero and his companions unsure of where the future will lead. Eleven carries secret scars that he has not yet shared with anyone, but all of that is about to change after the twins visit the peaceful village of Cobblestone to return a sacred weapon to its rightful place. Before El knows it, he's in the thralls of another adventure, revisiting old memories as he comes to terms with the life ahead of him.
Relationships: Camus | Erik/Hero | Luminary (Dragon Quest XI)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 9





	One Step Behind

**Author's Note:**

> For those who are curious, I've applied a workskin so the font will appear as Times New Roman, which might be smaller than the default font. If you want to disable workskins, you can do so by going to your preferences.  
> Also, I have embedded the breakers with links to music from the game (because why not?) so be careful where you stick your thumbs if on mobile.  
> Otherwise, read on!

[~*~<<>>~*~*~<<>>~*~](https://youtu.be/4UhF6xbEJ5E)

Eleven walks for a while just listening to their gentle footfalls as he and the twins traverse Yggdrasil, grabbing massive branches and descending toward the First Forest. He feels much lighter, yet emptier, without the original Sword of Light on his back. The Yggdragon’s words echo in his ears: _There can be no day without night._ Eleven steps over a vine then reaches his hands out to climb over a mossy log, feeling its damp bark brush his fingertips. _One day, the darkness will surely rise again._ He shakes his head, mind retracing the Yggdragon’s words like walking a well-worn path. _Love and courage,_ she had said.

“Eleven! Can’t you slow down? We can barely keep up!” Veronica shouts behind him and he turns, seeing the twins come up the rear. He stills, resting his right hand against a nearby branch and looking down at the world beneath them, barely perceptible through the cloudy atmosphere.

“Are you really that keen to get away from us?” Veronica huffs once she finally catches up, puffing out her chest, arms akimbo. “And after we were given that _wonderful_ speech!”

El huffs and shakes his head with a small smile, looking down once more, breath evening out again. Perhaps revisiting the heart of Yggdrasil had made him a little nostalgic, but his mind keeps returning to the Sword of Light — or more properly what meaning it held for him. That sword had been a companion of sorts too, that saw him through the hardship of losing Veronica and, in a way, losing parts of all his other companions, too. With the sword gone — or, er, out of reach — it was like that alternate world had never existed, save for a few moments here and there when an ally felt a case of déjà vu.

Maybe nostalgic was the wrong word. El doesn’t particularly _miss_ battling in the monster casino or having to gather everyone up after they had been separated, traversing landscapes that were familiar and yet so different than what he knew. Or of having to lay a fallen comrade to rest. As he understands things, that alternate world no longer exists. He wants — _chooses_ — to believe that the two realities have been patched together, which would explain that faint itching in the back of everyone’s heads that they’d done this all before.

“ _Helloooooo?_ El, are you listening!” Veronica yelps, El turning to see the glare in her eyes.

El’s expression betrays his attempt to look stoic and Serena approaches, placing a soft hand on his arm, other hand curled into a light fist over her heart.

“Is everything alright?” She asks.

“Yes,” Eleven says back.

“Great! Then let’s get a move on, shall we?” Veronica asks. El turns to follow the child woman’s lead, pushing the thoughts of a fallen Yggdrasil out of his mind. He will tell them later, when he’s ready.

“Are you sure?” Serena asks, rooted to the spot, staring at their backs before running to catch up.

“If El has something to say, he’d say it,” Veronica raises a hand and glibly waves Serena’s comment away.

They resume trudging on in silence, until they are out of Yggdrasil and back down to Erdrea. They reach a vine that takes them deep into the First Forest, through flowers as tall, if not taller, than them, from large purple orchids and beds of blue morning glories to spiky yellow daffodils and small red blooms scattered in bunches on the ground. The colors remind El of Veronica’s magic burst, only peppered across their hike.

It is so refreshing to see the unadulterated landscape not sullied by any vicious beasts, to not be stopped every two minutes to fight or take a rest. It is the first proper time being in the First Forest that Eleven can stop just to breathe without worrying about a monster ambushing him. So, he does, stopping to take a long, deep breath, feeling his lungs fill with the fresh scent of the flowers, listening as water dribbles over rocks and pebbles into cascading waterfalls. Birdsong fills his ears as a few sparrows fly by.

“I don’t mean to cut our little adventure short, but would you mind zooming us the rest of the way to Heliodor?” Veronica asks, crossing her arms.

Serena stops next to her sister and wipes down the front of her dress. “I suppose it is getting a little late,” she trails off, looking up at the sky, which has begun to melt into a pastel sunset.

“Okay… _after_ a ride on Cetacea,” El says, turning with a smile on his face. His hand is already reaching for the bag around his waist when he sees the twins exchange a look.

There is a secret, verbal conversation going on just between them, but it seems El has won out when Veronica shrugs.

“I can’t very well say no to the _Luminary,_ can I?” She asks.

The trio exchange some smiles then El pulls the Calamus flute from his bag and plays the notes to summon the flying whale, the magic wrapping them in golden light and teleporting them to the whale’s back.

The sensation of flying, from the flapping of Cetacea’s wings to the wind whipping around them, is enough to immediately put El in a better mood. He looks down at the world below, eyes following the path from the First Forest to Arboria. Like tracing the palm of his hand, his eyes flow from one line to the other, making all the connections in his memory.

The sun begins to set on this side of the world, casting the clouds around them in soft oranges and pinks. El stands and lifts his arms up to see his fingers sift through the wet puffs.

“It’s so gorgeous up here,” Serena says, seated near the back, her hands in her lap.

Veronica lets out a soft sigh, looking around them as Cetacea raises higher into the sky until their heads are in the clouds and the ground below begins to fade from view.

“We better get back soon,” she mumbles, El sharing a look with her and nodding.

As the last of the sun dies out, El turns to the girls and gives them one last, small smile, Cetacea flapping mid-air.

“Heliodor was it?” he asks, and the two give resolute nods that make El laugh. He casts the spell, and they are once again enveloped in golden light that sends them down to right outside the gates of Heliodor.

[~*~<<>>~*~*~<<>>~*~](https://youtu.be/qusL-8iXsds)

It takes all but two seconds for El to realize that something is going on in the city. The gates are wide open, allowing music and lights to pour out past the guards and into the silent night beyond. Though the sun has already set outside, the brightness persists from within the walls of Heliodor, where El glimpses strings of lights and torches down every street. He takes a step forward to take a closer look when he hears shuffling behind him.

“Wait, don’t look!” Veronica shouts and El laughs as he closes his eyes, Serena coming up behind him to cover them properly.

“I’m going on ahead. _You_ wait here until it’s your turn,” Veronica says, then presumably marches off into the raucous party awaiting him.

“You’re not hiding anything from me, you know,” El says, but waits as he’s told.

“Just hold on a minute longer,” Serena says over a garble of chatter.

The noise begins to die down when Serena uncovers El’s eyes and he lifts his head to see a burst of color, mostly magenta, purple, teal, and yellow, Heliodor’s signature colors. People are lined up along both sides of the path that leads up to the castle, dressed in colorful attire. Serena nudges El to begin walking and he looks up at the banners hanging from every window and roof as he passes, grinning when people begin to throw confetti at him and shout.

A booming voice brings El’s eyes up toward the stairs leading to the royal square. Sylvando is dressed in parade master plumage, standing tall. He brings a cone up to his mouth and projects his voice through the city, shouting, “Now introducing the one, the only, Luminary and hero of Erdrea, ELEVEN!”

He raises his arms into the air and people shout and throw more confetti. The parade begins to play music, and Gemma emerges from the crowd to take El’s hand.

“Come on, silly! Don’t just stand there, let’s dance!” she shouts over the merrymaking, dragging him into a dizzying whirl.

Gemma is wearing a frilly white and magenta dress, akin to her usual wear, with short puff sleeves but sans the apron. The skirt is long enough for some impressive ballroom twirls, her heels clicking against the cobblestones.

Eleven’s mind takes a moment to catch up with his body, which Gemma sends into another spin. He almost can’t believe this is happening! It must already have been a few weeks since they defeated the great darkness for good, giving everyone time to go back to their homes and recover for a bit. El had been wondering when he’d get a chance to see all his friends again after they took their separate ways, and just his luck that it was today, like this! He shuffles with Gemma in their haphazard dance, laughing with giddy joy.

El blinks and before he realizes it Jade is behind Gemma, tapping her on the shoulder. Gemma stops and turns to give the taller princess a wide-eyed look.

“Mind if I steal him for a moment?” Jade asks, and Gemma obligingly drops El’s hand, tilting her head and giving a wide smile as the two turn to ascend the stairs toward the castle, El holding a hand against his head to steady himself.

“Everyone was beginning to worry that you wouldn’t show,” Jade says, leading the way in front of him. She’s wearing the golden tiara her father had given her, along with her wholly appropriate warrior princess dress. El glances down at the pink and purple ruffles rustling as she walks.

“I would have come back sooner if I had known,” he says.

Jade looks over her shoulder and smiles. “I understand. I imagine you were growing restless, being holed up in that cottage every day.”

El gives a ready nod. Of course Jade gets it. She had grown up fighting her whole life, ever since that night in Dundrasil’s castle. With monsters around every corner, she and Rab probably never stayed in the same place for too long, moving from town to village to campsite. El had started getting accustomed to that way of living too since hitting the road, and found it surprisingly refreshing. He wonders how the time away from adventuring had treated her. He imagines she wouldn’t like staying at the castle if there was something more important she could be doing, like saving people in distress or helping rebuild, much like El himself.

“Ohhh daaarling! I have some _words_ to exchange with _you!”_ Sylvando shouts in his sing-song voice as they reach the entrance to the castle. Sylvando jumps to clasp his hands on El’s shoulders. “What took you so long?” he pouts next to El’s ear.

El turns to address Sylv, bringing up a hand as he speaks. “I was watching the sun set on Cetacea. You would be late too if you had seen it.”

Sylvando taps a finger against his chin, considering the defense for a moment, then nods. “Alright, honey. I’m not one to deny the Luminary a pretty sunset when he feels like one!”

With Jade and Sylvando on either side, El enters the castle, all the outside decoration following them inside, with the added benefit of more lights. Partygoers flow in from outside like a steady, colorful, talkative river.

The main entrance-turned-banquet hall is the trio’s first stop, where four chandeliers hanging from the ceiling cast the golden castle in a soft glow. Two impossibly long tables stretch out along the red carpeted floor, their tablecloth-laden surfaces neatly covered with empty plates and silverware, candelabras and bouquets of flowers filling the empty spaces. No one is sitting in any of the high-backed chairs, though El is restless to sit down soon himself.

He notices Hendrik’s purple head of hair peeking from above the crowds as he approaches, and once the knight gets closer, El realizes Rab is there too, carrying something in his arms. Hendrik shines in his twin eagle armor, and Rab looks honorable as ever in his Drasilian dress coat.

“Good evening, Eleven,” Hendrik says, giving a bow that makes all his armor clang.

El nods in recognition before getting a sharp nudge in the ribs from his grandfather. “Yer late, laddie! Get dressed so we can finally have dinner, will ye?” he pushes the bushel in his arms toward El.

El accepts them with a curious tilt of his head and, with a gesture from Hendrik, follows him past the tables and upstairs to a guest room, taking the chance to soak in more sights and search for sorely missed friends.

“King Carnelian has reserved this room especially for you, in the chance that you’d like to stay the night tonight,” Hendrik says when he pushes the door open and El peers inside.

The rooms are just as El remembers them, with tiled floors and royal purple wallpaper. A king bed sits in the corner beside a large window, along the same wall as a bookshelf and wardrobe. There’s even a purple settee and chairs, with a put-out fireplace, a sign that summer is coming and they no longer need the hearth’s warmth.

“I’ll stay,” El agrees as he unfolds the clothing in his arms and steps into the room. He closes the door behind him as he dresses, taking a second to look himself over in the mirror. The teal long coat thrown over his frame reminds him of his old leather tunic, but completely done up in purple and gold trim that makes him feel more like a Drasilian prince than he’s ever felt before.

When El steps back out of the room, Hendrik lifts his eyebrows in a subtle show of surprise, nods in approval, then walks back with El toward the royal banquet hall.

“Where’s Erik?” El can’t help but blurt out as they descend the stairs.

“Hm… I haven’t seen him,” Hendrik says.

Veronica and Serena have joined Jade, Rab and Sylvando at the bottom of the stairs, the twins now sporting gowns of purple and pink, respectively. Serena looks more elegant dressed in her sacred raiment, though Veronica’s dress puffs out like a (cute) purple mushroom.

Serena claps her hands and grins. “Oh, you look absolutely splendid!”

“Thank you,” El says with a small smile, surveying his friends’ lit-up faces.

He lets out a sigh, trying to tamp the disappointment of not seeing Erik among them.

To be fair, Erik had only left to visit his sister a week ago. Maybe it was asking too much to expect him to be back already.

El glances as he descends the rest of the stairs, only pausing when he looks down to see that everyone’s eyes have shifted to a space above his head. El whips his head back around, eyes landing immediately on a certain someone’s spiky blue hair.

It’s Erik, standing at the top of the stairs with a big ballooning pair of magenta pants and a long-sleeved cream shirt unbuttoned at the front. Purple, teal, and pink sashes wrap around his waist and flow down his leg. He stands with legs apart, pointed teal shoes aimed in different directions. He looks like a circus wrapped up into one person and seems a tad bashful about it, left hand rubbing at the back of his head with a sheepish smile.

Eleven’s lips split into a grin and he lurches up the stairs two at a time. In a flash, he wraps his arms around Erik’s torso, the other gasping as El lifts him into the air.

“Woah! Miss me that much, huh?” he asks in his unmistakable accent.

They had only recently started living together shortly before Calasmos’ defeat, yet when Erik left for Sniflheim afterward, days felt never-ending. Time spent camping on the Tor together, fishing in the mountains, or learning new dinner recipes was replaced with counting the days until Erik would return and they could do it all together again.

El briefly rests his chin on Erik’s shoulder and takes in the smell of fresh pine. He feels a little cold to the touch, which makes El wonder how recently Erik had returned from his visit to the frigid west. At least El can’t feel Erik’s ribs through his clothing. As leader of their team, El had always fretted over the others’ welfare, from being healthy and well-fed to keeping up morale. At any given time, he was never satisfied with the state of two of those things when he factored in the endless torrent of monsters looking to get a bite of them.

El lets Erik go after a few seconds, stepping aside to let the others smile and poke fun at Erik’s blush.

“Aw, aren’t you two just the sweetest!” Sylv croons, hands clasped together.

“Alright, alright, no need to gawk,” Erik says in his usual cool tone, and steps down the stairs, El following after him with a pleased smile.

With the whole gang finally assembled, Hendrik leaves to tell King Carnelian they are ready to eat. The bushy-eyed, bearded man stands at the top of the stairs in front of the great eagle statue and addresses the room, announcing it is time to dine.

“Please take your seats, everyone,” he says.

The chatter dims as everyone finds their places. El feels a tug on his sleeve and looks down to see that Erik’s guiding him to sit right next to the front, in the king’s right-hand seat. Well, he _is_ the most important guest here, right? El complies and sits back in the chair, sighing with relief to finally be giving his feet a rest.

His other comrades settle themselves down around him, with Erik to his right and, after some deliberation with the king, Jade across from El. Hendrik is next to her, then Rab and Sylvando. Serena sits next to Erik, leaving Veronica on the end. El leans over to see down the table, where Mia, Gemma, his mother, and others are seated.

Servants begin to lay out trays of buttered dinner rolls, bowls of fruit and vegetables, stuffed and roasted turkey, salad, finger sandwiches, beef medallions, grilled sea bass, and other things that make El’s mouth water. Erik groans next to him, eyes set on the cooked meats. The servants begin to go down the line and fill everyone’s goblets with a gratuitous amount of wine.

King Carnelian stands from his chair and taps a fork against his glass. “Everyone, let us once again raise a glass to the Luminary. I would not be standing here today if not for this noble hero!”

Fortunately, the speech ends there, with people clapping or raising their glasses to celebrate (After all, they had already had a huge celebration the night of Calasmos’ defeat). Many at the front of the table also raise their glasses, and El grabs his goblet in time to clang it with everyone else’s. Erik and Rab readily down some of the red liquid, though a few — namely the young Veronica and Eleven — abstain from drinking.

“So, how did it go?” Sylvando asks, cradling his chin in his hands and leaning forward in his chair. His eyes land on El, who raises his eyebrows.

“With what?” he asks.

“With the _Sword of Light!_ ”

Oh, right. “It was fine,” El shrugs, reaching across the table to yank a leg off the nearest turkey. Erik has already beaten him to the first one, so he tugs the second leg off before anyone else can.

“Oh, it was such a wonderful moment. I will treasure the memory forever,” Serena sings in her gentle voice, made more difficult to hear over other voices and a piano that has begun to play.

“Oh yeah? What was so great about it?” Erik asks through a bite of turkey.

“Well for one, we met _the_ Yggdragon,” Veronica says, nearly crawling onto the table to snatch a dinner roll.

“Ygg _what?”_ Erik asks again.

 _“Yggdragon!_ Ugh, do I have to explain _everything_ to you?” Veronica gripes. El has to give it to him though; the hero hadn’t known about the Yggdragon either before meeting Her. He had always known Her as Yggdrasil.

“Oooh, She’s the great creator of Erdrea itself,” Rab explains.

“Very interesting indeed,” Hendrik says, rubbing his chin in thought.

“I presented the Sword of Light to the heart of Yggdrasil, and it began shining, so brightly that it enveloped us in this… blue magic,” El begins. Heads turn to listen to his retelling of the moment. “Some clouds parted, and She emerged from them. She said She had battled Calasmos before, but had been defeated, and that darkness had reigned over the entire world. She said the Watchers came to help Her, and She returned as Yggdrasil.”

“She gave quite the motivating speech too, don’t you remember? And She gave you the title of _‘Erdrick: mightiest of heroes,’”_ Veronica says, spreading her arms wide as she makes the declaration.

“Mmmhmm,” El hums a confirmation and begins busying himself with loading his plate with food.

“We don’t have to start calling you that, do we?” Erik asks, and El turns to see the teasing smirk on his lips.

“Nah,” El says with a scoff.

“I don’t know, I think it sounds quite noble,” Jade says.

“I concur,” Hendrik says. “It is truly a title befitting a hero.”

“Mhm,” El hums again. His mind wanders again to those last moments before turning away from the Sword of Light, when he saw Yggdrasil’s vines curl around it. _It’s really over_ , he had thought with relief and a tinge of sadness.

El stabs his carrots with a fork and looks up to see his companions staring back at him.

“Oh come on, honey! Don’t look so glum!” Sylvando scolds, wagging a finger at him.

“I’m not,” El huffs. “Anyway… what have all of you been up to?”

Eyes shift across the table and land on Sylvando first, ever the forthcoming extrovert. “I’ve been spreading smiles, of course! Smiles as far as the eye can see,” he gleams, drawing an arch with his outstretched hand.

Serena lets out a light giggle. “Veronica and I went back home. Mother and father missed us horribly,” she says.

“Yep, nothing like mother’s home-cooked meals to cheer a girl up!” Veronica chimes.

“Hendrik, Rab and I have been here, helping rebuild the kingdom,” Jade says, looking at King Carnelian at the front of the table.

“That’s right. We have a lot of work ahead of us if Erdrea is ever to fully recover from the devastation the monsters have wrought,” he says.

El nods. He at least has that to look forward to.

“Speaking of, could I have a word with you?” Carnelian asks, and Eleven straightens in his chair.

“Okay,” he says, and pushes his chair back to stand and follow the king out of the room, glancing back at his friends, who have only shrugs to give.

The two step out into the hallway, El lifting his head to look the king in the eye.

“Tomorrow night I will be gathering a small colloquy to address the state of our world and make a plan moving forward. I would like you to be there.”

“Of course,” El says. “Is there a reason you’re telling me privately?”

“As you know, the last King’s Colloquy we held in person ended in utter disaster. I don’t want to introduce the possibility of something happening again. For that reason, I would encourage you to abstain from telling too many people about the meeting.”

El can see where he’s coming from. Carnelian’s wariness is well-placed, even if El finds it a little silly that the king hadn’t felt comfortable enough to make the announcement among his other comrades.

“Okay,” El concedes with a nod. At least that’s a secret he only has to keep for a day.

“Good,” Carnelian says, and flashes a small smile. He moves as if to say something else, but then turns back toward to the banquet hall. El follows him without a word, though he smiles to himself knowing the king no longer harbors the evil intentions he once had.

When El approaches the table again, Veronica straightens in her chair after whispering something into Erik’s ear. El shakes his head; the two manage to make trouble even when he’s not around!

“Welcome back,” Erik says, slouching in his chair and raising a glass to El as he sits down again.

Everyone is looking at Sylvando, who twirls his goblet in his hand as he speaks. “…And I told _him,_ ‘Darling, I’ll admit I’m no _spring flower_ and you’re just a little sprout!’”

“So, you didn’t go out with him?” Serena asks, sounding put down by whatever direction this story has taken.

“No,” Sylvando sticks his nose up. “I’m looking for a _finely aged wine,_ not _grape juice._ ”

Veronica snorts, nearly spewing her drink across the table, El looking between the two with a tilt of his head. “What’s this about?” he asks.

Sylvando places his glass down and huffs. “A member of the Phenomenal Phnom Nonh Parade asked me on a date! Can you believe it?” he gasps. El rolls his eyes. “Of course I love his performances, but he’s so young,” Sylvando continues. “And not my type at all.”

El pushes his plate away, directing his attention to the conversations emerging around him, riding along with Sylvando’s chattering a while longer before he feels a tapping on his shoulder.

“Feel up for some dancing?” Erik asks.

El is up on his feet in an instant. “Yes please,” he says, and follows Erik to the dance floor.

He loves Sylvando’s company, he really does, but nothing compares to the comfort of Erik’s steadfast, and more often silent, presence. The mood shifts completely when it’s just the two of them, like stepping off the Salty Stallion and returning to earth after a long time at sea. Feeling completely grounded. He doesn’t have to say or do anything for the effect to happen; it’s habitual, he guesses.

Erik offers his left hand once they reach an empty corner of dance floor and El accepts.

“Be warned, I only know how to lead,” Erik says.

“I don’t know any dances,” El admits with a laugh.

“Good. Just follow me.”

Erik steps forward and El follows, stepping back. His quick reflexes on the battlefield easily translate to the dance, which Erik has set at a slow pace to begin with. It feels a little funny to have Erik’s left arm around his shoulder blade, probably because the thief isn’t a touchy-feely sort of person when in public. But it feels good to be in the circle of his arms, especially when Erik stares back at El and gives a smile. And oh, how that gaze makes the hero melt…

“You know you’re being a little… moody, right?” Erik asks, though El knows it’s a statement of fact.

“Yes,” Eleven says.

“We all have our secrets, but you can tell me yours, you know.”

“I know,” El mumbles. Great, now the _thief_ is making _him_ feel guilty! “You’ll find out soon enough, I promise. Let’s talk about you. How was Sniflheim?”

“Cool,” Erik says, and El thinks he means literally. “I took Mia to the Royal Library. She really enjoyed it. It’s a _completely_ different place without monsters."

“I want to go sometime,” El blurts out.

“We should.”

El smiles. He loves Erik’s readiness to jump into adventure. “How’s Mia?” he asks.

“She’s great. I brought her with me.”

“I noticed,” El smirks. “You know, she could stay in Cobblestone if she wanted. It’s a lot closer than Sniflheim or the Viking hideout.” Erik might technically be living with El because of a wish granted by Dustan, but they both knew Erik would move in regardless; after all, Erik had promised to always be by his side, and they had agreed before that it was what they both wanted. Yet it seemed selfish to keep the siblings apart; El never wants to think he might have unwittingly let that happen.

“I’ll ask her,” Erik says.

The music continues to play, and Erik stops directing them across the dance floor and pauses to sway in place instead. El stumbles out of their paced movements to do the same.

“I read the letter you wrote to Derk,” he mumbles. “You didn’t want me to know that you were looking forward to coming back?” he raises his voice to a lighter, teasing tone.

“I didn’t say that.”

“No, you wrote it,” El huffs, though he doesn’t actually mind. Erik knew when he mailed that letter that Derk would tattle on him.

Erik scoffs, but doesn’t say anything. El brings his hands out of the dancing posture and instead wraps his arms around Erik in a hug.

“I got something for you,” Erik says, and El pulls back to see the red rectangle of fabric he’s produced from his pocket.

“You didn’t _steal it,_ did you?” El grins, taking it into his hands.

“What, me? Steal? I’m a changed man! Go ahead, open it,” Erik crosses his arms with a smug smile on his lips.

The fabric isn’t heavy or large enough to hide anything bigger than a small rock. Eleven carefully peels the cotton fabric back, holding it in one palm as he begins to worry that the gift has fallen out.

“Now I know you’re not a jewelry person, but…” Erik begins when El sees the glint of gold. He takes the ring and holds it up to the light, seeing the blue gem in the center twinkle. Three bands twist together and converge in the center. Is it a catholicon ring perhaps? “A guy owed me a few favors. I had it custom-made.”

It’s official. Erik’s spoiling him. “Thank you,” El says with a grin and a squeeze of Erik’s shoulder. He slides the ring onto his left ring finger and lifts an eyebrow at Erik, who takes El’s hand and runs his thumb over the new accessory.

“You don’t have to tell me what’s bothering you if you don’t want to, but let me do all the worrying.”

“Okay,” El says with a nod.

Nothing can top that for biggest highlight of his day. Or week, even! Eleven is grinning like a fool when Jade approaches and offers him her hand.

“You can’t keep him to yourself all night,” she teases Erik, whose arms are crossed and his grin smugger than El thought possible.

“Go ahead,” Erik says, and El nods, knowing he looks like a goofball with a grin still plastered to his face.

He feels like he’s just taken a pep pip. When the music picks up the pace, he holds his arm out and gives Jade a spin, landing in a dip. The night descends into more dancing and merrymaking afterward, and El dances with Sylv, Serena, Gemma, and even Veronica, though she ends up placing her shoes on the tops of El’s feet. Her don’t-give-a-shit attitude still shocks him sometimes, as subject he is to embarrassment and caring about what others think.

At some point in the party, nearly everyone has retired for the night. The hall has quietened except for the adventurers still awake at the front of the table. King Carnelian had bid his good-nights a while ago, but Hendrik and everyone else had insisted — begged, almost — that they get to stay out a little bit longer. Carnelian couldn’t resist saying yes, not when Jade gave him her best pair of puppy eyes.

El finally gets what he wants, properly catching up on what everyone else has been doing, and they swap stories across the table, reminiscing about all the great adventures they’ve been on.

El sits at the front of the table where the king had been, driven by everyone’s (slightly drunken) goading. Rab produces his crown and is waving it in the air, trying to push it toward the front of the table. Hendrik grabs it and places it just so on El’s head, the crown sliding down over his eyes.

The table is overcome with laughter as El lifts it off and sets it on the table.

“Oh, you look ridiculous!” Veronica giggles.

Sylvando leans back in his chair and gives out a long yawn, arms stretched out comically wide.

“I could sleep for days,” Jade mumbles tiredly, placing her head on the table, cushioned by her hands underneath.

“Yeah, I think it’s time to hit the hay,” Erik says, and makes to stand.

El reaches for his arm and he sinks back down, giving the younger male a furrowed brow and a frown.

“Wait. There’s… something I need to tell everyone,” El says, raising his voice to grab their attention.

Everyone’s faces shift from their sleepy, happy-go-lucky miens to more curious looks. Jade lifts her head off the table and Hendrik straightens in his chair, shaking off the vestiges of a buzz.

El can’t help the strong frown drawn across his lips. He’s gotten worse at hiding his true feelings, no longer the sort of person capable of keeping a neutral expression.

Veronica stands in her chair and slams her hands on the table. “Out with it then. You’ve been acting funny ever since we visited the World Tree.”

El takes a deep breath and looks across the table at everyone, then glances down at his own hands instead. He doesn’t know when he made the decision, but he knows he has to tell everyone now. When is the last time they’ll all be together like this, in this good of a mood? And yet there is a part of him that doesn’t want to say anything. He wants to freeze this moment in time and skip over it, never having to deal with the discomfort of having them know.

But no. They deserve to know what had happened. That time Eleven had spent meant something to him, and he wants it to mean something to them, too.

“The first time we visited Yggdrasil to retrieve the Sword of Light, things… played out differently.” El takes a gulp.

“What do you mean?” Serena asks, eyebrows knitted with confusion.

“There’s an alternate timeline, one where we were ambushed and Jasper shot me in the back before I could reach the Sword of Light,” he explains.

His allies start to straighten in their chairs. Rab’s eyes narrow, his cheeks flushed with color, drunk. El can see in their expressions that they’re straining to understand, confused by what is clearly — to them — not the truth.

“Without the Sword of Shadows, Jasper defeated us, and Lord Mordegon successfully brought down the World Tree.” Serena gasps, the party looking among each other in shock. “He tore the power of the Luminary from my chest… I felt like I was dying. The pain was unbearable.” Even upon saying the words, there is an ache in his torso. He doesn’t want to think about it any longer than he has to.

“But that’s not what happened at all,” Veronica says. “You’re not making any sense! We defeated Jasper, and Mordegon!” She scowls at him like how she scowls at a soon-to-be felled beast.

“Hold on, lassie. Let’s listen tae what he has to say,” Rab grumbles from across the table. Veronica lowers herself back into her chair with a pout and a cross of her arms.

“We defeated Mordegon in our timeline too, but not until after months of suffering. Thousands, if not millions, died. Heliodor was taken over by monsters. One called Alizarin destroyed Nautica, though Queen Marina tried to fight it off.” He pauses and reads the pain on everyone’s faces, regretting the unnecessary details. “A-anyway, when it was finally over and peace was restored, we went to the Tower of Lost Time and I shattered the Sphere of Time, sending me back in time with the Sword of Shadows.”

“‘And peace was restored?’” Veronica repeats with a squint of her eyes. “You’re telling me that after all we went through, after _winning,_ you wanted to go back in time and do _that_ all over again?”

“No, but—”

“Then why did you?” Hendrik interrupts. El turns and sees the hard lines set above his eyes, the way his strong jaw is latched shut. El can’t shake the feeling that he is somehow being admonished for his decision.

The pressure of the eyes resting on him is now a lot more uncomfortable.

“Because… because _Veronica died ,_ okay?” El spits the words out like poison. _Is that what you wanted to hear?_ , he thinks, and is immediately surprised at himself. He didn’t know he had such a mean side. “She died protecting us when the World Tree collapsed with all of us inside of it. We were all sent to different corners of the world, and we didn’t even know she was dead until—” El cuts himself off, his fingers curling into the tablecloth. He glances down and stares at the mark of Yggdrasil on his hand.

“That’s enough,” Serena says, light yet firm as a taut thread of silk. There is a strain in her voice too, as though that thread is close to snapping. El looks up to see that she and Veronica are holding hands and frowning.

“I’m sorry,” El mumbles, heaving another sigh.

“We’re heading up to bed. I-I need some time to think,” Serena says with a cold twinge to her words that makes El want to shutter. She stands from the table and Veronica jumps down after her.

El stares down his fork and listens as their footsteps recede, a door slamming shut. He can’t help but flinch at the noise. He lifts his eyes again when Sylv speaks.

“I’m sure all of us are a little — okay, a _lot_ — shocked by what you have to say. They need some time, okay?”

“Aye. We awl just need some rest,” Rab says, grunting as he pushes his chair back and approaches El. “Ye did the right thing, telling us. Dinnae feel bad.” He gives El one of his cheery old man grins, though it’s clearly forced.

“Okay,” El says, though his voice diminishes into a whisper.

Jade is up from her chair and moves to kneel so she can properly scoop him into her arms. “You have sacrificed so much for us,” she says, squeezing him.

“Oh, group hug honey,” Sylvando says, and steps over to squeeze an arm in around them as well.

El begins to blush but awkwardly returns the hug while seated, opening his eyes to glance at Hendrik, who averts his gaze.

He wonders what must be going on inside Hendrik’s head, the man who once chased him to the ends of the earth, then turned around and followed him instead. Perhaps he’s feeling guilty for everything that’s happened, or perhaps his impressions are only changing for the worse.

Jade pulls away but holds him by his shoulders. “Promise me we’ll talk in the morning,” she says.

“I promise,” El echoes.

She lets him go, hands brushing against his arms as though trying to fortify him. “Try to get some sleep,” she says, Rab nodding.

“I knew you were amazing, but oh darling,” Sylvando can only sigh. “Jade’s right. We can talk more in the morning,” he says, and gives El a peck on the cheek.

“Good night,” Hendrik says stiffly, awkwardly moving out of his chair to follow the others as they exit the room.

El turns his head to stare, watching their backs as they reach a guarded hallway, receding down the corridor. His mind feels frazzled, like he’s been hit with kafuddle. He spent all this energy worrying what everyone would think when he finally broke the news, and now his body is too exhausted to try and parse out the results. He knows it’s not so much how everyone’s reacting but more the unrelenting part of his mind that keeps returning him to those memories he doesn’t want to think about. He’s come to a point where he needs to share the thoughts with someone else, lest they drive him insane. He can no longer be the _only one_ carrying the _burden_ of Veronica’s death—

“Hey,” Erik whispers, and El feels the familiar gloved hand brushing his chin as Erik holds it and turns El’s face toward him.

Erik reaches up and wipes a tear from the corner of El’s eye. His face fumes, blushing madly when he realizes he’s crying. What is he, five? But Erik just laughs.

“For what it’s worth, I think you did the right thing.”

Of course Erik thinks that. He thought that back then, too.

“Stay with me tonight,” El says.

"Of course,” Erik reassures.

El rises and leads him back up the stairs toward his guest room. When they finally enter, Erik jumps into bed, the mattress squealing like a vanquished sham hatwitch. El briefly turns to lock the door — he’s learned since the day Mordegon loomed over him while he was sleeping — and looks back to see Erik struggling to remove the colorful sashes from around his waist.

El laughs and sits on the edge of the bed, reaching over to tug the pink one loose. Erik’s still a little drunk from the dinner, as his hands are usually nimbler than this, as El knows from many, many encounters with said hands.

“If someone told me that one day, I’d be sleeping on a queen bed in Heliodor Castle while the Luminary undressed me, I wouldn’t believe them,” Erik says, and El giggles again, staring into his smirking face.

 _I love you. I love that look you’re giving me, and how confident you are, and how you make everything better, no matter how awful things are,_ El thinks, and plants a kiss onto Erik’s forehead.

Erik doesn’t say anything else, but that’s perfectly fine with El, as they both have plenty to think about. They manage to remove the rest of Erik’s clothes until he’s down to his boxers, while for El it’s as easy as shedding his coat, leaving him in a white shirt and pants.

He crawls under the covers and turns to stare at Erik, who stretches an arm out to rest in a half-hug. El’s eyes effortlessly droop shut, and he lets out a small _hm_ of satisfaction listening to Erik’s steady breathing as it puts him to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading the first chapter what I hope will be a very enjoyable story. If you liked the first bit and feel so inclined, a kudos or comment is appreciated. Constuctive criticism is also welcome :-)


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